Experts yesterday began a two-day conference to devise modality of an investment-facilitation unit aiming to develop the urgently-needed infrastructures with private capital. reports UNB.

The Infrastructure Investment Facilitation Centre (IIFC). being formed on proposal from ths World Bank, will catalyse investment by the private sector in areas like ports, roads, energy, telecoms and water 'rhe Centre will be in place before the scheduled visit of the World Bank President. James Wolfensohn, to Bangladesh next month.

The IIFC would be set up at a cost of 15 million US dollars and work closely with the Infrastructure Development Company, another brainchild of the World Bank, which has already been created.

The World Bank is providing 235 million US dollars. Some five million pound is coming from British Department for

International Development (BDID) and another five million dollars from the Canadian International Development Agency (C1DA).

An amount of 225 million US dollars will be channelled into the private Initiatives as eouity through the company, wnlch is expected to attract private capital to the tune of 1.5 billion dollars in few years.

The World Bank has mooted the Company and the Centre to bring private investment in the infrastructure, seeing the dramatic improvement of infrastructure in East Asian countries with private capital.

Finance Minister Shah AMS Kibria. opening the meeting at a city hotel, called the Centre a key Initiative to develop coun try's extremely poor Infrastructure with private investments.

With inadequate infrastructure we not only affect the quality of life of thousands of our people, but also lose out in the competition to manufacture and supply goods and services

at low cost." he said.

He noted that despite better productivity and low labour cost, the country's exporters find it hard to compete in the other markets as their competitors have more efficient and adequate infrastructural facili-

"Chronlc underinvestment and neglect over many years in the past Is responsible for the situation," the minister said

The Economic Relations Division (ERD) and the World Bank have jointly arranged the roundtable conference being attended by experts from government ministries opened for private investment and donor agencies.

The finance minister also acknowledged the possibility and said the Bangladesh government was also adopting a similar approach for "dramatic increase of investment in infrastructure and modernising it.

"We realise that the private sector not only brings financial

resources that will free the government to use our meagre resources in other much-needed areas, but also brings with it new technology, modern management methods and higher efficiency," he said.

Calling for a "fundamental change" in the way the government responds to private initiatives. Kibria pointed out that the government machinery Is not used to dealing with the private sector ownership and operation of power plants, ports and roads.

"Hence, in order to carry out such development with low costs to both the government and the private entrepreneurs, there is a need to change our perception of the private sector, create suitable ways to interact with them efficiently and establish sound procedures and processes to develop priority projects." he said

Reminding that the initiative is "a very high priority." the minister asked the officials concerned to set up the Centre

without delay and not to replicate another bureaucratic setup.

The Centre should work as a fast-track and one-stop-shop in real sense for developers interested in the infrastructure sector. he said and directed the officials that it should not be used to restrict private initiative.

While speaking about the IIFC. the finance minister seized the opportunity to claim that the economy was performing well and the recent outcry about an economic breakdown by the opposition was misleading.

He said the national economy Is on a dynamic growth pace. "Bangladesh Is going ahead very firmly with growth in every sector." Kibria told the function.

ERD Secretary Dr Masihur Rahman. Additional Secretary of ERD Chowdhuty Mohammad Mohsin and representatives of the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the BDID and the CIDA also spoke on the occasion.